The Prince Who Becomes King
by theembarrassingone
Summary: A young confused prince must learn what it means to rule a country. Just a little oneshot... PLEEEEAAAASE READ, wrote it months ago and finally picked up enough courage to post. Review if you love me! :


I wrote this months ago for english and decided to post it.

I hope ya like it!

The Prince that Becomes King

Deep within the dark ages, a country had fallen on hard times. During the day, cruel knights marched through the streets, searching for some form of entertainment. During the night, thieves and murderers haunted the decrepit alleyways. In this country, no one was safe.

**Living in this country was a young prince who never smiled. He would sit quietly all day and all night staring out the window, watching his country and the occurrences in the streets. "Why can't they take care of themselves?" he would ask himself. Every night he would listen to the screams and only feel annoyed in that the noise kept him from falling asleep.**

**One cold night, his father, the king died. The prince was abruptly awakened from his restless sleep to be told of his new duties. He was told the crowning would be the next day. But the prince didn't want to be king. He didn't want to move from his room. He didn't want to pretend to care about the peasants' petty, unimportant problems. But there was nothing he could do; there was no way to escape his birthright.**

**The prince walked over to his window and stared out, suppressing a yawn. He looked out the window, staring aimlessly like he always did. Then he saw something out of the ordinary. There was a small, dim, orange light. So dim many people would miss it. It floated high off the ground. **_**"So beautiful,"**_** the young prince thought. Suddenly the prince felt a powerful need to have it. With his mouth set in a determined line, he reached out the window. As his outstretched hand neared the light, the light began to move away. The prince reached, and reached, and reached, and . . . fell. He toppled over into the darkness.**

**Splash! The dark muddy water of the moat surrounded him. The pitch-blackness tightened around him, suffocating him. He couldn't swim. He flailed aimlessly trying to satisfy his starved lungs.**

**The prince felt a warm feeling on his arm, then a tug. Unsure of what was happening, the confused prince resisted. He looked up and saw a bright light, the most beautiful light he had ever seen. He felt a tug that brought him closer to the light. The tug became stronger and more frantic. The prince felt his strength leaking out as he was pulled from the water. He gasped, his lungs filling with much needed air. His eyes slowly cracked open and stared right into the brightest, bluest eyes he had ever seen.**

**The prince gasped in surprise and instinctively began to back away. The child was a girl, far younger than he. In her hand she held a small, orange candle. She had blond hair that glinted even in the dim sunrise. Her skin seemed to be made three shades darker because of the dirt. And her eyes! Her eyes were so bright that it hurt the prince's eyes when he looked into them.**

**"Ello sir, you okay?" She asked. Her voice was both chipper and worried at the same time.**

**"I think so," the prince answered, taking a deep breath, as if double-checking his ability to do so.**

**The girl smiled, "Are ya hungry?" She asked, chuckling softly.**

**The prince frowned, "Why do you ask?"**

**"Your tummy's making noises," She laughed.**

**"Oh, well, I guess I am quite famished." And he was. The young prince had yet to have breakfast and his stomach felt as if it was being pulled apart at the seams.**

**The girl stood up and motioned for him to follow. The young prince who had only stared aimlessly at the city from his window, entered for the first time.**

**It was chaos. People were running everywhere. There were children screaming for their parents and running blindly through the streets. There were men standing bravely, attempting to protect their families from cruel warriors. From what the prince could see, none of the men succeeded. The prince scowled. **_**"Stupid peasants, why don't they just take care of themselves!**_**"****he thought angrily.**

**The girl weaved expertly through the crowds with such skill that the prince could barely keep up. He focused all his energy on walking, keeping both eyes in the girl. **

**Stumbling, the prince fell forwards, banging into a man. He rebounded backwards and crashed into hard metal. He felt a painful tug on his collar, courtesy of the knight he had just crashed into. He felt himself being pulled from the crowd into a dark alleyway off the side of the street.**

**Slam! His back pounded against an alleyway wall. He felt tears well up in his eyes.**

**"Why don't you watch were you're going brat?" Came the gruff and angry voice.**

**"I-I-I…" the prince stammered nervously.**

**"Hey, leave him alone!" The girl had appeared and was now running towards them with amazing speed. The prince wanted to shout at her to run, but stopped himself at the last minute. He was the prince. Was his life not more important than hers?**

**The girl charged forwards, seemingly prepared for anything. The knight promptly dropped the prince to the ground and drew his sword, preparing to strike down the young girl. The girl's blue eyes glanced at the prince and looked meaningfully at the alleyway exit.**

**The prince immediately understood the message she sent, and scurried out. There was a bang, a slam, and then a clattering sound that could have been a sword dropping to the ground, but the prince wasn't sure.**

**Click, clack, click, clack. Footsteps slowly headed towards him. The prince's breathing sped up. His heart pounded so loudly that he was sure they could hear him across the world. An ominous shadow popped out of the opening. The prince turned to run.**

**"Where ya goin?" Came a familiar voice.**

**The prince spun around to see the girl looking at him curiously. She had a cut on her cheek but otherwise seemed unharmed. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a shiny red fruit. She tossed it to him.**

**"Got this for ya," she said smiling.**

**The prince looked down at the red sphere. It was bruised slightly and somewhat dirty. Nothing like what he ate at the palace.**

**"Are you gonna eat it? 'Cause if not it would be my pleasure to do so," Said the girl, attempting to mimic the prince's fine language with little success. **

**The prince shook his head and looked at the sphere. He was famished. He cleaned it off on his shirt and closed his eyes. Carefully he took a bite. It was good. Almost delicious. It was sweet and bitter at the same time. It satisfied both his taste buds and his hunger. **_**"If the foolish peasants had food like this, what do they possibly have to complain about?" **_**The prince thought to himself.**

**The girl look at him with appraising eyes, "you're the prince aren't ya."**

**It was a statement, not a question. The prince nodded.**

"**Would you like to see where I live?" She asked. Then, she turned around and left without waiting for an answer.**

**The prince was stuck. He had no idea where he was. He did not know his way around the city. He did not know anyone in the city. He was force to follow.**

**The girl went deeper into the midst of the city. The more she walked, the darker it seemed to become. Finally she came to a stop.**

**They were standing in front of a house that appeared to have been sucked up by a tornado and spat out the other end. The windowpanes were destroyed and it only had three walls, and no doors. The girl walked though the large opening and the prince followed. **

**Once inside the prince blinked in surprise. There were children. Lots of children. Each of them sitting quietly in a separate crevice. Each one dirtier than the one before.**

"**All of them lost their parents," said the girl.**

**The prince looked up, startled. The girl's bright blue eyes were burning. The intensity in her stare set the poor prince on fire.**

"**A knight attacked or a thief killed their parents, it's the same story every time. All of these children are waiting for something to change. No matter how long we all wait or how hard we all try, it won't make a difference. We have no power in this world. But you do, don't ya. You can be our hero."**

"**What if I fail?" the Prince whispered, closing his eyes. Fear in his voice.**

"**Then you'll be remembered as the one who tried. Maybe others will try after ya." The girl said, her voice strong and her eyes bright.**

**The prince's eyes snapped open, "There's nothing I can do! The rules are set. No one follows them! I will fail like that the others who've tried!"**

**The small girl seemed to shrink, "Then even hope is lost."**

"**Just show me how to get home." He said, sighing.**

**Reluctantly, the girl nodded. She stood up and turned to leave. The prince followed.**

**It was dark now, and the prince could barely see a few feet in front of him. The girl walked closer to him this time, and slower. It was as if all the energy was forcibly drained from her body.**

**An infinite number of streets twisted at strange angles. If it weren't for his little guide, the prince would have been lost a long time ago.**

**The girl came to an abrupt stop. She stood still as if listening for something.**

**Suddenly the prince was yanked roughly to the floor.**

"**Get down" the small voice shouted.**

**A flash of silver flew where the prince's head had been only moments ago.**

"**Give me all you got," came a hiss. Horrible comprehension settled in the prince's mind. They were being attacked by a thief.**

**The girl stood up and aimed a kick to the thief's gut. He dodged it and swung a sharp, curved dagger near the girl's face. She managed to escape with only another scrape running down her cheek. But the thief wasn't finished yet. He swung his legs out, knocking the girl to the ground. He lifted his dagger for the final blow.**

**The prince acted on instinct. His body was working ahead of his brain. He jumped in the way of the knife.**

**As pain entered his body and registered in his mind, the prince could only think about how stupid that was. He had known this girl for barely a day, yet he just threw his life away for her. What was the point of that?**

**His eyelids began to feel heavy. Well, at least he did something. At least he didn't die sitting in his room, staring aimlessly out the window. At least… and the there was blackness.**

At first there was a tingling feeling in his toes, and then his feet. Soon, the feeling was spreading throughout his whole body. His eyes cracked open.

**The prince was lying outside the castle, by the moat. Back to where it had all started. Had it all been a dream?**

**No. The girl was there, kneeling over him. She was again holding the small orange candle. The prince could see that she was pale even under all the dirt. The healthy glow had disappeared from her cheeks. Her eyes had dimmed. She gas­ped and fell to her hands and knees on the earth next to him. The prince understood. The girl had traded her life for his. He sat up slowly, moving onto his knees. "But… why?" He said; his voice sounded hoarse from exhaustion.**

**The girl looked at him through half-lidded eyes, "Because you can do something. Ya have the ability to make a difference."**

"**But…" The prince started.**

"**Just promise me one thing," the girl said, cutting him off before he could protest.**

**The prince nodded, waiting.**

"**Don't be nothing, don't do nothing. I don't care if you mess up. Just…"**

**The prince turned his head towards a faint breeze that blew through the trees. When he looked back, the small, orange candle had blown out and the young girl lay motionless on the ground. The glow gone.**

**The prince lifted himself up slowly. His eyes ran over the girl and up to the palace. He looked up to the guard tower.**

"**Let me in!" He yelled. The guard jerked from his doze and quickly lowered the drawbridge, anxious to get back to sleep. The prince walked across it.**

**The prince confidently climbed the stairs into his room. He quickly glanced to the window but otherwise walked right past it. At the water basin, he scrubbed the dirt from his skin. He went over to his wardrobe and put on a clean pair of clothes. He then turned and walked out of his room and shut the door behind him.**

**When he returned downstairs to the court of the castle, there were courtiers and nobles already sitting there with bored, indifferent expressions. The prince walked up to the king's throne and stood in front of it.**

**The bishop walked in. He held a bejeweled sword in his hands. The prince knelt and closed his eyes.**

**"Do you accept the responsibilities of kingship?" The bishop asked, suppressing a yawn.**

**The prince's eyes snapped open, startling the bored bishop. The newly bright and intense blue eyes of the prince now surveyed the room. The prince stood up. The young prince, who never smiled, now smiled a smile so large it lit up the whole darkened country. The cruel knights snapped in order and the thieves cowered in fear. The king's smile warmed the hearts of those who suffered.**

**"I swear I shall do my best." **

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**All done**

**Review!!!**

**Or ELSE**


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